Nord Stream Sabotage Suspect to Fight Extradition in Italy’s Supreme Court

A Ukrainian suspect believed to have coordinated the attacks on the Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea plans to challenge his extradition to Germany in Italy’s Supreme Court after a lower court ordered his transfer.

Under German privacy laws, the individual has been identified only as Serhii K. He was arrested last month near the Italian city of Rimini on a European arrest warrant related to the 2022 explosions that damaged pipelines supplying Russian gas to Germany.

A Bologna appeals court approved his extradition to German authorities, according to a decision reviewed by Reuters on Tuesday. However, the suspect’s defense team stated that they would take the case to Italy’s highest court, the Court of Cassation.

In a statement, they said, “Fundamental rights—such as the right to a fair trial, conditions of detention, and functional immunity—cannot be waived in the name of automatic judicial cooperation.”

Both Moscow and the West have described the explosions as acts of sabotage. The attacks significantly disrupted Europe’s Russian gas supply, exacerbating the conflict in Ukraine and straining energy availability across the continent. No group has claimed responsibility, and Ukraine has denied any involvement.

According to a statement issued in August by the German prosecutor’s office, the suspect was part of a group that placed devices on the pipelines near Denmark’s Bornholm Island in the Baltic Sea.

Defense lawyer Nicola Canestrini said that during the hearing scheduled for Wednesday at the Court of Cassation, the court would rule on a previous request to annul the arrest order on the grounds that it had been translated into English instead of the suspect’s native language.

Canestrini added that the defense has five days to formally appeal the extradition decision, with the appeal expected to be heard in about a month.

The suspect faces charges of conspiracy to cause explosions, unconstitutional sabotage, and the destruction of critical infrastructure.

German prosecutors allege that he and his accomplices set sail nearly three years ago from Rostock, on Germany’s northeastern coast, aboard a sailing yacht to carry out the attack.

Italy’s Carabinieri police arrested the suspect on August 21 in San Clemente, a small town near Rimini on Italy’s Adriatic coast, where he was vacationing with his family.